State Police defends Downtown chase, calls suspect danger to others

Torvon Davis was arrested Thursday May 8, 2014, after police say he led officers on a high-speed chase that began in Putnam County and ended in a crash in Downtown Indianapolis. A bicyclist was injured in the crash.(Photo: Provided by the Indiana State Police)

After an Indianapolis man led officers on a high-speed chase that ended in a crash with injuries in Downtown Indianapolis, the Indiana State Police defended its decision to pursue Torvon Davis — even in the city's more crowded streets.

The nearly 40-mile chase began Thursday morning on I-70 in Putnam County, after a sheriff's deputy spotted a white Ford Escape going 120 mph on the highway. Police said Davis exited I-70 on West Street and later turned on South Meridian Street. The chase ended at Maryland and Meridian streets, where Davis struck an eastbound Ford Taurus, causing the vehicle to spin into a nearby bicyclist, police said.

The high-speed chase raised questions about the State Police's pursuit policy and whether officers should have halted the chase when Davis reached Downtown Indianapolis, where vehicle and pedestrian traffic is heavier.

ISP's policy states that a pursuit shouldn't begin or be continued when the need to catch a suspect is outweighed by the risk to the public's safety.

In Thursday's police chase, however, Indiana State Police Capt. Dave Bursten said Davis was a clear threat to the public and catching him was of the utmost importance.

"If we didn't try to stop that person, he would've crashed and killed himself or somebody else," Bursten said. "I don't think the general public or law enforcement want somebody like that driving around on the street endangering motorists. There's every indication that he will continue to engage in criminal activity."

Police first spotted the Ford Escape near the Cloverdale exit on I-70. Though police did not know the identity of the driver then, they had received information that the vehicle was stolen. During the course of the chase, Bursten said, Davis nearly struck a trooper on a motorcycle.

"This person was eventually going to crash and seriously injure somebody, whether anybody was chasing him or not," Bursten said. "He was already driving like a maniac before police tried to stop him."

Buy Photo

(Photo:
Danese Kenon/The Star
)

Bursten said police were monitoring traffic conditions and Davis' speed during the chase. He said officers involved in police pursuits always need to weigh different circumstances.

"If this person had been driving 80 mph in a 75 mph zone, we probably would've terminated the pursuit," Bursten said. "He was already driving recklessly before police were involved."

Bursten added that in police chases, the suspect is the one in control.

"They're dictating the circumstances," he said.

Immediately after the crash, which happened shortly after 9 a.m., police said Davis got out of the car and ran to a nearby parking garage, where police caught up with him. He spat at an Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officer and yelled profanities after he was caught, police said.

Police said the Escape may have been stolen from an Illinois car business. Officers also found about $4,000 in cash in Davis' possession, that was thought to be stolen.

The bicyclist, a young woman, sustained leg and back injuries in the crash. The driver of the Taurus also had minor injuries and was treated at the scene.

Bursten said the bicyclist had ear plugs at that time, but said he doesn't know whether that kept her from hearing the sirens or whether she could have avoided getting hurt if she weren't wearing ear plugs.

Davis has been preliminarily charged with resisting law enforcement, possession of a stolen vehicle, leaving the scene of a personal injury crash, criminal recklessness with a motor vehicle and battery by bodily waste on a police officer, according to State Police.

Bursten said it will be up to prosecutors to decide what charges he will face and where, including Marion and Putnam counties in Indiana and in Illinois, where a warrant for burglary and auto theft had been issued.